Olive oil, wrote Truman G. Madsen, “was used both internally and externally. It was a cooking oil, made better by heating, and was a condiment for salads and breads and meats. The pure oil had other vital uses: it was an almost universal antidote, reversing the effects of a variety of poisons. It was often used in a poultice believed to drain infection or sickness.
As an ointment, olive oil-mingled with other liquids-soothed bruises and wounds and open sores.” Further, “the image of pouring oil on troubled waters, and the associated olive branch of peace-such as the offering of peace and relief to Noah after raging seas-were common in Bible lore. In other spiritual contexts oil was the token of forgiveness. And hence Paul speaks of it as ’the oil of gladness.’ ” (“The Olive Press,” Ensign, December 1982, pp. 58-59.)
“House of Israel, Like Unto a Tame Olive-tree”
Why would Zenos choose an olive tree to typify Israel? What is the significance of an olive tree?
No tree was more important to the economy and culture of the Middle East: it was a fruit whose meat, oil, and seed were all consumed, utilized, or traded. It was and is a tree known to all persons.
The olive tree is a natural symbol or metaphor for Israel. It requires almost constant care before its fruit will have a texture and taste that is acceptable; continued pruning and digging and fertilization are essential before proper growth and fruitage can take place. The olive tree lives for centuries and almost never dies.
Many of the older olive trees, for example, in what is believed today to have been the Garden of Gethsemane, would probably have been roots in the days when Jesus and his Apostles walked and talked and prayed there almost two thousand years ago.